Identity Coach & Personal Branding Strategist for Creators

I Built a 30-Year Creative Career by Breaking Every Personal Branding Rule—Now I Help Creators Do the Same

I'm K Thompson—known in the music industry as Krust.

Award-winning electronic music producer. Label founder. DJ. Identity coach for creators in the new economy.

For three decades, I've built a sustainable creative career doing unorthodox shit—and now I help creators build magnetic personal brands through creative identity transformation and mindset-first coaching.

• Made music that didn't fit any where (they called it "experimental," We called it Widescreen)
• Started Full Cycle Records when people said I couldn't (it became legendary)
• Stood out by being unconventional, not strategic
• Built a "personal brand" without ever learning what that meant

My secret?
I didn't follow the rules. I transformed my identity first, then lived it.

I didn't pick a niche. I didn't create content pillars. I didn't build funnels.

I became someone impossible to ignore. Then I showed up as that person every day.

That's "Identity-First Personal Branding"—I just didn't have a name for it yet.

Why I Started Adapt The Canvas: From Creative Self-Doubt to Signature Identity

After 30 years in music, I kept meeting the same creators over and over:

Talented. Brilliant. Capable of greatness.
Playing small.

Struggling with creative self-doubt, imposter syndrome, and creative burnout.

They didn't lacked skills or tactics.
They hadn't transformed their creative identity.

They were:

• Following advice that didn't fit them
• Building "personal brands" that felt fake
• Exhausted from performing instead of being
• Stuck in limiting beliefs they didn't even know they had
• Playing by rules they never questioned

I recognised the pattern because I'd lived it.

Early in my career, I tried to fit in. Tried to make music that would "work." Tried to play someone else's game.

It almost killed my creativity.

The breakthrough came when I stopped trying to fit in and started expressing my authentic self.
When I transformed my creative mindset from "producer trying to make it" to "artist creating something Unique."
When I built my "Signature Identity" instead of copying what worked for others.

When I broke the rules instead of following them.

That's when everything changed.

Three decades later, I'm still here. Still creating. Still standing out.
Not because I hustled harder. Because I built from the inside out.

Now I help creators in the new economy do the same—faster, with a system.

What I Believe About Personal Branding

Most personal branding advice is backwards.

It teaches you to:

1. Pick your niche
2. Create content pillars
3. Post consistently
4. Grow your audience
5. Hope it works

That's tactics-first. And tactics-first leads to burnout.

Here's what I know after 30 years:

You can't build an authentic personal brand on an inauthentic identity.

If you don't believe you're worth premium prices, no content strategy will make you charge them.
If you're scared of being "too much," no niche will let you stand out.
If you haven't dealt with your limiting beliefs, no amount of posting will make you magnetic.

The real work is internal. Your personal brand is just the natural expression of that work.

"It's an Inside Job"

My Approach: Personal Branding for Creators Built on Identity Transformation

I don't teach content tactics or growth hacks.
I don't promise "10K followers in 30 days."
I don't give you templates to copy what works for others.

I'm a creative mindset coach who helps you transform your identity first. Then your personal brand becomes inevitable.

This is personal branding for creators in the new economy:

• Built from the inside out (not tactics-first)
• Rooted in creative mindset transformation (not performance)
• Creates your "Signature Identity" (not generic positioning)
• Sustainable for decades (not hustle culture)
• Magnetic by nature (not manufactured)

The difference?
Traditional personal branding treats you like a product to package.
Identity-First Personal Branding treats you like a human with massive untapped potential.

The ATC Operating System

After 30 years of building my own identity-driven career, and helping dozens of creators transform theirs, I developed a system:

The Adaptive Identity System
90 days to transform your identity and build a magnetic personal brand from the inside out.

Phase 1: Identity Archaeology (Month 1)

Uncover your signature identity beneath the limiting beliefs.

Most creators building personal brands struggle with:

• Beliefs they absorbed from others (not their own)
• Creative self-doubt and fear of being "too much" or "not enough"
• Rules they never questioned (following instead of leading)
• Creative imposter syndrome that keeps them playing small
• Identity they never consciously chose

We excavate your authentic creative identity. Who were you before the world told you who to be?

Outcome: A foundation of truth to build your personal brand from—your "Signature Identity" emerges.

Phase 2: Creative Repatterining (Month 2)

Transform your creative mindset through belief upgrades.

Once you see the limiting beliefs causing creative burnout and self-doubt, you can smash them.

This isn't affirmations or positive thinking. It's creative mindset transformation:

• Delete programs that don't serve you
• Install new beliefs aligned with who you're becoming
• Build unshakeable creative confidence
• Overcome creative imposter syndrome
• Practice being your fully expressed self

Outcome: Your transformed creative identity = your unique personal brand positioning. Your "Signature Identity" becomes clear.

Phase 3: Integration & Amplification (Month 3)

Express your transformed identity. Build your magnetic personal brand.

Your transformed identity naturally wants expression:

• Visual signature (aesthetics that reflect your truth)
• Voice signature (how you naturally communicate)
• Content signature (what you can NOT talk about)
• Positioning signature (where you boldly stand)

We're revealing your identity through every touchpoint.

Outcome: A personal brand that doesn't feel like "branding." It feels like freedom.

Why This Works

Because I've lived it.

Everything I teach comes from 30 years of building a personal brand the unconventional way:

In Music:

• Broke genre rules (created a new sound instead of fitting in)
• Broke industry rules (started my own label)
• Broke "personal branding" rules (stood out by being impossible to categorise)

The result?
Award-winning career. Legendary label. Three decades of sustainable creative success.
Built on authenticity, not performance. Built on identity, not tactics.

Now, for Creators:

• I help you break your own rules (the ones keeping you small)
• I help you transform your identity (operating system upgrade)
• I help you build personal brands that last (sustainable, not hustle)

The result?
Creators who are magnetic, confident, and impossible to ignore—expressing their authentic selves at full volume.

Who I Work With: Creators Ready for Mindset Transformation

Creators in the new economy who:

• Are tired of performative personal branding
• Struggle with creative self-doubt or imposter syndrome
• Experience creative burnout from hustle culture
• Want to build sustainable, authentic personal brands for creators
• Know tactics without creative mindset transformation = burnout
• Are ready to do the real work (identity transformation)
• Value authenticity over algorithm gaming
• Want to discover their signature identity and stand out
• Are building for the long-term (not get-rich-quick)

Creative entrepreneurs:

• Photographers, designers, writers, coaches, consultants
• Solopreneurs building personal brands
• Artists monetising their creativity
• Anyone building in the Creator Economy

If you're playing small and know you're capable of more—you're who I work with.

What Makes Me Different as an Identity Coach for Creators

I'm not your typical personal branding coach or mindset coach.

I don't come from:

• Marketing agencies (teaching tactics)
• Corporate backgrounds (teaching polish)
• Coaching certifications (teaching theory)

I come from:

• 30 years as a working creative (lived experience with creative identity transformation)
• Building a legendary label (entrepreneurship)
• Creating award-winning music (artistic credibility)
• Overcoming my own creative self-doubt and imposter syndrome (personal transformation)
• Doing unorthodox shit that worked (proof it's possible)

The difference?

Most personal branding coaches teach you what they learned in a course.
I teach you what I lived for three decades as both a creator and identity coach.

Most coaches haven't built the thing they're teaching you to build.
I've been building my personal brand since before it had a name—through creative mindset transformation, not tactics.

Most coaches teach tactics that worked for someone else.
I teach creative identity transformation that creates YOUR unique magnetism and "Signature Identity".

My Philosophy

1. Identity First, Tactics Second
You can't build an authentic personal brand on an inauthentic identity. Transform internally first. Everything else follows.

2. Transformation Over Performance
Stop performing. Start being. Personal brands built on truth last decades. Personal brands built on performance burn out.

3. Sustainable Over Hustle
The creator economy rewards consistency, not burnout. Build personal brands that energise you, not exhaust you.

4. Magnetic Over Tactical
Stop manufacturing attention. Transform your identity, express it boldly, and attract the right people naturally.

5. Unconventional Over Safe
Playing it safe makes you invisible. Standing out by being authentically different makes you impossible to ignore.

My Commitment to You

When you work with me, I commit to:

Honesty.
I'll tell you the truth, even when it's uncomfortable. You don't need another bullshit coach. You need transformation.

Transformation, not templates.
Your identity is unique. Your personal brand should be too. No copying others. No generic advice. Just you, at full volume.

Long-term thinking, not quick fixes.
Real transformation takes 90 days, not 7. We're building sustainable personal brands that last decades, not viral moments that fade.

Authenticity, not performance.
I show up as myself—unpolished, direct, real. I'll help you do the same. No fake personas. No exhausting performance. Just you.

Beyond Adapt The Canvas

When I'm not helping creators transform their identities, I'm still creating:

Music: Still producing as Krust. Still pushing boundaries. Still refusing to fit into a box.
Listen: The Edge of Everything

Wonder Palace Creatives: Still championing unconventional artists.
Explore: Wonder Palace

Amma Life CBD Oil: Building a health and wellness brand that brings quality and authenticity to the CBD space.
Visit: Amma Life

The DO Lectures: Shared my story of creative identity transformation and building a sustainable career on your own terms.
Watch: DJ Krust at The DO Lectures

This Is Cliques Podcast: Deep dive into my mindset, experimental approach to creativity, philosophy, and legacy building—discussing exactly who I am and the mission I'm on.
Listen: Krust on This Is Cliques

Living the work: Everything I teach, I live.

That's the point.
When you build from identity, there's no separation between "you" and "your brand."
You just become someone impossible to ignore, then show up as that person everywhere.

Ready to Transform? Personal Branding for Creators Starts with Identity

If you're tired of:

• Building a personal brand that feels fake
• Creative burnout from hustle culture
• Creative self-doubt and imposter syndrome
• Following tactics that don't work for you
• Playing small when you know you're capable of more
• Performing instead of being yourself

Then you're ready for "Identity-First Personal Branding" and creative mindset transformation.

Heres how i can help: The Creator Matrix, Signature Identity,

The Adaptive Identity System:
90 days of creative identity transformation to build a magnetic personal brand from the inside out. Discover your "Signature Identity" and become impossible to ignore.

Not tactics. Transformation.
Not in 2 weeks. In 90 days.
Not by performing. By becoming.

Let's Talk

Email: info@adaptthecanvas.com

Whether you're ready to start the 90-day transformation or just want to explore if "Identity-First Personal Branding" is right for you, reach out.

I don't do high-pressure sales calls. I do honest conversations about whether we're a fit.

If you're ready to do the real work—the identity transformation that creates lasting personal brand magnetism—let's talk.

If you're looking for quick hacks or templates to copy, I'm not your guy.

But if you're ready to become impossible to ignore by being unapologetically yourself?

Let's start.

"I didn't build a personal brand. I became someone impossible to ignore. Then I showed up as that person every day. That's "identity-first personal branding."
— K Thompson (Krust)

Featured Work

Krust - The Edge of Everything (Pitchfork Review)

Award-winning music that broke every genre rule. Built over 30 years of refusing to fit in.

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